Watch out for dinosaurs while prospecting.....

[Jim in Idaho]

Caught 13 of these little buggers this summer, while prospecting in Wyoming.

 

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[pippinwhitepaws]

Arizona horned toads are protected species...why catch them?

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Arizona horned toads are protected species...why catch them?

Oh for cryin' out loud...I don't keep them, and the ones in Wyoming, which is where I was if you'd read the post, are not the same species. I catch them because I can, and I enjoy looking at them...is that all right with you?
Jim

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

wow...

{I did read, which I why I stated Arizona toads are protected...it seems so it is up north.}
http://www.e-referencedesk.com/resources/state-symbols/wyoming/reptile.html


just because you can...does not mean it is the correct action.

thank you for the polite conversation.

 

[Jim in Idaho]

wow...

{I did read, which I why I stated Arizona toads are protected...it seems so it is up north.}
Wyoming State Reptile: Horned Toad



just because you can...does not mean it is the correct action.

thank you for the polite conversation.

Correct action according to who? You?
Your reply to my original post was rude on two counts. First, you insulted me by making the assumption I broke the law. Second, you gave me unsolicited advice regarding a law I have no interest in. Maybe you should go back to kindergarten and learn how to get along with others.
Jim

 

[cactusrat]

Wow, Horny Toads (Horned Toad) in Wyoming. I would’ve never of thought that they lived so far up north.

We use to have a lot of them in South Texas, not any more. The last one I saw was about six years ago. Before that one, maybe 20 years ago. I live and use to work in the brush country and just don’t see them any more.

Thanks for sharing the story.

 

[63bkpkr]

People like animals. Animals fascinate me and I enjoy observing them and when they are simple little creatures I enjoy catching them, if I can, to look at them closely, treat them kindly and to learn more about them. Touching a bumpy horned toad adds to the experience of seeing one, yes you can see they are bumpy but to actually touch another living creature is an experience even a thrill. I've caught young lizards and petted them till they felt comfortable enough to stay in my hand without being held. Of course the little bugger may have been on the cold side when I caught it so it may have enjoyed the early warm up. Who knows what it thought about being petted/cared for and about. And yes I let it go as it belongs 'out there' and knows how to take care of itself.

So Jim, what else did you find out there? There should be some actual Old dinosaur bones in Wyoming as well as some Indian lands that need to be respected. How was the prospecting?

Here's a picture of a fossil I found here in Northern California about two years ago.
I was at 6000' elevation hiking out of my favorite river canyon and there laying at my feet was this fossil looking up at me. An ancient ocean/lake/river with animals that had been covered over by dirt at 6000' above sea level, imagine that. The rock in the area is quite fractured from the mountains moving during an earthquake or from me hiking in and out so many times, either way the fossil layer has been exposed and one rolls down every now and then and is spotted and enjoyed. Oh, that spot of yellow on it was NOT there when I found it and yes it is a piece of gold that was found elsewhere.
This is a picture of my ride with the country I prospect in in the background. Way down at the bottom of the canyon is a nice flowing river where I prospect. The finding is not always easy however the being in there is sure good for the soul as the country is just beautiful to behold. Every now and then and when I've worked really hard I come up with something like this that makes my jaw drop open or like this and either one just makes me happy to be alive and 'out there' exploring.

Enjoy and best of success with your prospecting..................................63bkpkr

 

[Jim in Idaho]

View attachment 869237

People like animals. Animals fascinate me and I enjoy observing them and when they are simple little creatures I enjoy catching them, if I can, to look at them closely, treat them kindly and to learn more about them. Touching a bumpy horned toad adds to the experience of seeing one, yes you can see they are bumpy but to actually touch another living creature is an experience even a thrill. I've caught young lizards and petted them till they felt comfortable enough to stay in my hand without being held. Of course the little bugger may have been on the cold side when I caught it so it may have enjoyed the early warm up. Who knows what it thought about being petted/cared for and about. And yes I let it go as it belongs 'out there' and knows how to take care of itself.

So Jim, what else did you find out there? There should be some actual Old dinosaur bones in Wyoming as well as some Indian lands that need to be respected. How was the prospecting?

Here's a picture of a fossil I found here in Northern California about two years ago.
View attachment 869224 I was at 6000' elevation hiking out of my favorite river canyon and there laying at my feet was this fossil looking up at me. An ancient ocean/lake/river with animals that had been covered over by dirt at 6000' above sea level, imagine that. The rock in the area is quite fractured from the mountains moving during an earthquake or from me hiking in and out so many times, either way the fossil layer has been exposed and one rolls down every now and then and is spotted and enjoyed. Oh, that spot of yellow on it was NOT there when I found it and yes it is a piece of gold that was found elsewhere.
View attachment 869225 This is a picture of my ride with the country I prospect in in the background. Way down at the bottom of the canyon is a nice flowing river where I prospect. The finding is not always easy however the being in there is sure good for the soul as the country is just beautiful to behold. Every now and then and when I've worked really hard I come up with something like this View attachment 869227 that makes my jaw drop open or like this View attachment 869228 and either one just makes me happy to be alive and 'out there' exploring.

Enjoy and best of success with your prospecting..................................63bkpkr

I see the occasional, mostly broken, pieces of arrowheads, and spear points, or the occasional scraper. I've also been finding a few old, blackpowder cartridges. I don't metal-detect over there, just prospecting. I'm prospecting for diamonds. That primarily involves finding Kimberlite-indicator minerals, like this pyrope garnet that is sitting on an anthill.

Since I'm primarily mapping anthill minerals, I run into a lot of horned lizards.
Your fossil is great, as is the country you roam. I found a fossil very similar to that, this summer, but the fossil was white rather than dark. I was raised down in SoCal, and vacationed in northern CA a few times while growing up. I always liked the Shasta country and the Susanville area
Jim

 

[BosnMate]

Am I the only one that checked out the gravel in that photo for arrow heads. Couldn't help myself. Couple of rocks in there I'd like to flip over.

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Am I the only one that checked out the gravel in that photo for arrow heads. Couldn't help myself. Couple of rocks in there I'd like to flip over.

There's a lot of great rocks in that country.....it's a rockhound's paradise, for sure.
Jim

 

[BC1969]

This does not really relate to this post, just part of it as far as seeing something up north thats normally in the south, I once seen a crocodile in Detroit behind a KFC, by a dumpster, was gonna feed it, in reality, it was just a GIANT rat atleast 2 feet long
lol

Cool little creature that toad is.
Mike

 

[63bkpkr]

Yes BC1969, the rats in Deetrooit can get really big. The Racoons can get up to 75 lbs in certain areas, usually the U.P. and the streets in general in D town are not safe to walk at night and sometimes not in the day either. I was raised in 'the area' though we left when I was twelve and I think I've been back twice possibly three times since I left. Not much reason to go back anymore.

And Jim, Yes the Shasta/Susanville areas are nice country, I've mostly only passed through the areas but nice mountains, rivers and clean air. Now if Shasta popped its cork that could change the place quite a bit but I suppose Lassen would go first. "I don't metal detect over there" - is that because it is not allowed or it is just not the type of country that would yield good targets?. The gravel in that picture is almost all the same size and with lots of square corners so I'm guessing it is not from a river bed yes/no? Thank you for the further input..............63bkpkr

 

[mr_rich]

Those are cute! I've been having problems down here in Florida with a lizard that's 10 ft long that doesn't want to give me permission to search his river island!

 

[Ronzie]

I love reptiles, but mostly snakes. Corns and rat snakes are my favorite as I have a couple that are big sucks and love to snuggle with me.

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Yes BC1969, the rats in Deetrooit can get really big. The Racoons can get up to 75 lbs in certain areas, usually the U.P. and the streets in general in D town are not safe to walk at night and sometimes not in the day either. I was raised in 'the area' though we left when I was twelve and I think I've been back twice possibly three times since I left. Not much reason to go back anymore.

And Jim, Yes the Shasta/Susanville areas are nice country, I've mostly only passed through the areas but nice mountains, rivers and clean air. Now if Shasta popped its cork that could change the place quite a bit but I suppose Lassen would go first. "I don't metal detect over there" - is that because it is not allowed or it is just not the type of country that would yield good targets?. The gravel in that picture is almost all the same size and with lots of square corners so I'm guessing it is not from a river bed yes/no? Thank you for the further input..............63bkpkr

There are just too few targets in that country. Finding anything of value would be like a needle in a haystack. Mostly it is simply used for grazing, hunting, and mineral mining...lots of trona in that country...maybe the largest deposits in the world. There is getting to be a little bit of interest in diamonds, but so far nothing has been found that's worth any commercial development. Some of the gravel is river gravel, some is just erosion debris from the Uinta Mountains. Some of the rock looks dark, and igneous, so maybe there are a few volcanic uplifts contributing to the gravel, too. Lots of semi-translucent, dark brown chalcedony quartz. The geology varies an enormous amount,
Jim

 

[hvacker]

Hey Jim, thanks for the ant hill picture. I had known about garnets in ant hills here in NM but the picture helps me to maybe not miss one.

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Hey Jim, thanks for the ant hill picture. I had known about garnets in ant hills here in NM but the picture helps me to maybe not miss one.

Glad it helped. Supposedly there's an area of New Mexico that has diamonds. If you are prospecting that area you should also watch for Chrome diopside in the anthills. It looks like emerald, but is usually in long, narrow slivers, though occasionally in square, flat crystals. It only stays intact for about 3/4 miles from the source. Both pyrope garnet and ch. diopside are Kimberlite indicators.
By the way...One of my younger brothers lives down there....Los Lunas.
Jim

 

[austin]

Wow, Horny Toads (Horned Toad) in Wyoming. I would’ve never of thought that they lived so far up north.

We use to have a lot of them in South Texas, not any more. The last one I saw was about six years ago. Before that one, maybe 20 years ago. I live and use to work in the brush country and just don’t see them any more.

Thanks for sharing the story.

Surprised me too. There were thousands or more here when we were kids, but not many anymore. Maybe they all moved to Wyoming and then Arizona, where they appear to be protected and deeply loved...

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Surprised me too. There were thousands or more here when we were kids, but not many anymore. Maybe they all moved to Wyoming and then Arizona, where they appear to be protected and deeply loved...

I know some of the reduced numbers are due to collecting and selling the little buggers. The ones you guys have down there are more popular...they have large spikes at the collar. The ones up here don't. The reason they were put under protection in the first place, was due to collecting and selling to pet shops. I'm sure that still goes on, despite the laws. I'm sure you guys in Texas still have ants? That's the main food source for Horned Lizards.
Jim

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Hey Jim, thanks for the ant hill picture. I had known about garnets in ant hills here in NM but the picture helps me to maybe not miss one.

hvacker....one thing I forgot to mention...some of the anthills are as much as 50 years old. I caution everybody I meet that there's no advantage to digging them up. The gems are good as indicators, but are too small to have any real value, and if there are gems in the area, there will be some right at the surface of the anthill.
All the best,
Jim